A Tiny Twist in Time
by I'oOoMoOo
Summary: Alternate Reality. What if Mikan did not return with them during the Zero Invasion scenario? A tiny twist in time causes big changes in the lives of our favorite heroes.
1. Prologue

A/n: So yeah... I'm planning on rewriting Legally rejected (still debating on that) but I had this idea on my mind after reading the Gakuen Alice Manga and it inspired me with the what ifs and the consequences. And I can't get it off my head until I wrote it, so I did. :D Basically, the plot line is still the same up until the **Z invasion** were they try to get the antidote for Hotaru. Instead of Mikan coming back with them, she doesn't... I won't say anything after that because that would be spoiling my story. :DD

**Disclaime**r: no copyright intended.

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><p><em>Prologue <em>

Inside the girls bathroom, Misaki sat at the farthest, darkest corner. She punched Tsubasa in the cheek earlier. She blamed him for loosing her yet deep down she knew she is also one to blame. If she had not agreed with the plan, teachers would have found out sooner and the plan wouldn't have pursued _then_ … She sniffed. She didn't bother wiping her face anymore. She wished she had somebody to slap her right across the face, just like what she had done to Tsubasa. "God, help me…"

Tsubasa lied on his bed staring bluntly at the school ceiling, not minding his throbbing cheek that Misaki punched earlier. He deserved it anyway. He was the oldest and most experienced in the group yet… It disgusts him just thinking about it. "I'm the stupidest most despicable person in the universe." He said it with so much self-loathing and venom. He then lied backwards and wished Misaki had punched him harder.

Upset is the biggest understatement of the century for Narumi. In his vanity where he sat undisturbed, tears flowed out of anger, disappointment and worry. "They were only grade-schoolers, what were they thinking?" He couldn't keep the question to himself. He was the teacher, he should have prevented all the childish nonsense. He could have chased them and brought them back… _All_ of them…

None of his animals could cheer him up. God knows what could. It wasn't suppose to end this way. If only he had helped her out instead of just telling her to hurry… Maybe… _Maybe_ she'd still be with them. "This is what she wanted… To save Imai…." Ruka convinced himself. Because of her, Hotaru is now healthy… Still in the hospital but healthy. But… But… And from the corner of the dark room, Ruka mourned again.

It still hurts to curl up in a ball. But Hotaru could not help herself. Emotion was not something she was fond of showing but this… this is something different. "_Baka_" She stared blankly at the hospital wall, thinking of all the possibilities that might happen to her _best_ friend. Logic tells her it wasn't her fault Mikan left. But something.. something in her says otherwise. If only she hadn't been shot, Mikan would not have ventured out, chasing Z… and.. and… Hotaru curled up more and cried silently again.

It was raining. He was cold. He was soaked. But none of this seemed to matter. He felt numbed inside anyway. Is he not strong enough? Is he that useless? Is he that _weak_? If only he had been stronger, if only he had been wiser, if only he had been faster none of this would have happened. He should have known they stand no chance and stopped everybody from all this _idiocracy_… then… Natsume Hyuuga kicked the tree in front of him as if it caused him all the misery he was feeling.

Because of that little twist that nobody expected, they lived their lives in silent guilt. Nobody verbally brought up the subject, it was much too painful to accept. Each had there own fault, each had their own guilt and each had their own memory that haunts them every time.

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**_...review?_**


	2. Unexpected Reunions

A/n: I want to thank everybody who reviewed the last chapter: D You people made my day :D I want to thank my sister for proofreading some of the parts. After reading this chapter's draft, I deemed it too short so I combined the first chapter and the second to create a long first chapter. I'm weird right? XD

Disclaimer: no copyright intended.

_…She Has Returned…_

**_"There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered."~Nelson Mandela quotes_**

_6 years later_

It was nighttime, probably past eleven. And the ocean looked as peaceful as ever, except for the speed boat floating in it. The night was quiet and solemn. Only the roaring of the boat can be heard. However, 140 meters (approximately) away from the scenario—none of this normal. No. Tonight is not a normal night. Men, whose faces were covered with masks that hid their identity, were scattered in the dock. Some hid in the bushes, others in the trees and minority in the yachts and boats that lay idle in the dock. Yes, tonight is the downfall of Z.

A tall man with jet black hair and silver mask hidden beneath the dark bushes raised his right hand to signal his men, a small sadistic smile played over his lips. In his mind, victory is already in the bag. Suddenly, one of his men- no a little boy, with light brown hair, on his team accidentally stepped on a branch destroying the planned silence and synchronized movement. Shock and nervousness became evident on the little boy's face. He looked at his leader, scared of what might happen to him.

"Do not abort!" cried the leader as if he read the mind of his troop. Too late for them though. 'Z' who became full aware of their presence started to rally poisoned bullets against them. Persona, the leader of the group, frowned. No, their victory will not be postponed, it has been 6 years since they started tracking and hunting them down, complete men or not at the end of this mission, 'Z' would be brought down. The boat started to retreat but the gun shooting did not seem to end. Persona tried to keep his cool. He specially trained one of his students if ever something like this might happen. And good thing he did. "Black cat," He murmured under his breath

As swift as the words left his mouth, a young man comparable to a cat itself ran towards one of the speedboats. Everything happened in just a blink of an eye and Black Cat was already in the ocean closing the gap between him and the targeted boat. When the 'Z' members saw him, the shooting stopped. It was obvious they did not want to hurt him. Unlike Persona's group, 'Z' members did not wear any masks. Black Cat scanned the boat quickly before jumping in. His move might be suicidal, but knowing Persona, backup is on the way. Until back-up arrives he has to take matters in his own hands.

"Natsume Hyuuga..." A middle-aged man greeted. His glasses reflected the light of the moon. "It's been what? 5 years since we last saw you? Time flies doesn't it?"

"Enough with the introductions." snapped Natsume. It wasn't 5 years. It's six. Without second thoughts Natsume used his fire alice and every inch of the boat was suddenly caught in fire. But Kanbu kept his cool. He even smirked.

"Tell you what." — He didn't seem affected by the fire surrounding them.— "Join us and we'll spare you."

"You're one to talk." Natsume smirked beneath his mask. Then the fire surrounding them doubled it's heat and height, everybody in the boat felt the effect. "Believe me Natsume Hyuuga…"His confidence on the matter seemed to have no end, in fact, he even felt more confident. "You are in _no_ position to threaten us."

Natsume did not respond. He inched towards Mihara Kanbu with his flames protecting him. Back up should be here any moment.

"Are you sure you want to be a _dog_ to the academy?" Natsume looked at the woman who spoke. She had short auburn hair, goggles that covered her eyes and familiarity that seemed to haunt him.

"You…" venom flowed in Natsume's voice. The woman was from six years ago. One of the reasons they lost a comrade. And her stealing Alice that almost lead them to die. The flames then reached it's turning point. The woman made him furious. If he had not worn his mask, his ruby eyes might have been enough to relay the message than his flames.

"Nullify everything." The woman said in a sweet serene voice that made Natsume sick to the stomach. Suddenly all of Natsume's flames disappeared; only marks of where the flames danced remained. Natsume tried to start another round of fire but his efforts were futile. He remembered what happened a few years back, at an encounter with the same Alice when he tried to escape the academy for one of his father's letters. _'It can't be.'_

"Would you like to reconsider our offer?" Kanbu asked. This time he stretched his hand towards Natsume to welcome him when he says yes. When Kanbu saw that Natsume did not waver with his decision, he pulled his hand back clenched into fists. "If that's what you want then don't bla-"

_Boom_

Backup has arrived. Natsume jumped away from the boat and dived into the ocean. Persona could get a little carried away and accidentally injure him in the process. _Typical. _Natsume swam to the nearest speedboat, careful not to get hit with the debris from the explosion.

"You're hurt." Yoichi said as he gave Natsume a dry towel. Natsume grabbed the towel and placed it in his shoulders. He didn't bother drying himself. He was disappointed, he didn't find her in the raided boat. They were this close in bringing her back but faith must have had other plans. "Shouldn't we help?"

Natsume looked at the enemy's boat Yoichi was pointing at. Clearly, this is the first time Yoichi has joined them on a mission. Everything looks under Persona's control: From afar, victory is really theirs. Before Natsume could close his eyes and rest, they heard an engine soar through the thick explosive fog. _It can't be._ But they did. They have escaped. Persona could not help but feel infuriated. He was robbed… again. Victory was already under his nose but it slipped away. For Natsume, he did not know what to think. She was not in the boat but something under the pits of his mind tells him they were already this close. Unfortunately, the tables were turned against them. With loathing eyes, Natsume watched the burning boat. It's no use chasing the escaping boat. It's gone and done.

"Isn't that a …body?" Yoichi's face paled as he pointed at a girl's floating form. Natsume squinted his eyes. The girl had auburn long hair.

_'Nullify everything'_

And that's when it hit him. There's only one person with that hair and that Alice. And that person is the reason why he dived back into the ocean to retrieve it.

"Natsume!" Yoichi called after him. "You're wounded!"

But Natsume didn't seem to mind. The sinking body in the cold sea water that appears to make him revive memories of a little girl he knew is the only thing he seemed to mind. There's a part in him that tells him not to get his hopes too high but a big part of him rejoices. _It's her. Mikan Sakura is alive._

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The first thing her hazel eyes saw was the familiar white ceiling. The hospital scent that made her feel nauseous brought back memories she kept hidden at the back of her mind. At first, she thought she was dreaming but the unexpected pain she got from trying to get up said otherwise.

"You shouldn't get up yet."—The voice is familiar. His sweet caring fatherly voice matched his face. Nothing much changed in Narumi's features only that it became more mature with time and experience. "How are you Mikan?"

They were silent for a while.

"Where am I…?" asked Mikan softly. It was an obvious question, both of them knew the answer pretty well. But somehow there's a tiny ray of hope in Mikan that she's not in Alice Academy.

"I think we both know the answer to that question." Narumi tried to give a hearty laugh but he failed though the genuine smile on his face didn't fade. And traces of pity were evident in his voice.

They kept quiet for a while again. Mikan only kept her eyes forward careful not to create any form of bond-or rekindle any while Narumi stared softly at his favorite student happy to see her again. He observed her how she struggled to keep her eyes forward and how she bit her lips together. "How are you Mikan?"

He asked again. This time Mikan looked at him in the eye.

"I'm fine… Narumi-sensei." She was reluctant in calling Narumi by his name but she felt happy to call her old teacher again. Instead of just staring blankly at him, she gave him a small decent smile. Mikan's answer answered many questions for Narumi. Mikan Sakura has changed. Her pigtail hairstyle remained the same but her big innocent eyes were dull and cold and her warm smile turned into one that is restraint and sad. He never thought something like this would happen.

Both Narumi and Mikan were caught off guard by the sudden intrusion in the secluded hospital section. When Mikan saw who it was, her grip on the blankets tightened and her eyes glared daggers at the unwanted visitor.

"I see you've made our guest a warm welcome." said Persona, a certain malice dripping in his voice. Narumi didn't look the least bit pleased seeing the Death Alice wielder inside the hospital. It was only out of good manners and courtesy he hadn't shooed him out.

"Mikan needs to rest." said Narumi, his voice firm. He stood up from his chair and gestured Persona to follow him out of the hospital. "We shouldn't deprive her of a well deserved rest."

Persona only smirked. "You go ahead. Your student and I have some unfinished business."

Narumi narrowed his eyes. "Persona. What ever that _business_ is I'm sure it can wait. Mikan needs _rest._"

"We shouldn't deprive _other_ students of their safety either." mocked Persona. It seemed to have touched a nerve as Narumi clenched his hands into fists. Mikan, no matter how much she has changed would never pose a threat to anybody much less the student body.

_Knock_

Narumi did not bother responding to the door. He glared at Persona, trying to read his mind. Persona, on the other hand did not seem affected by the glares he is receiving.

_Knock_

"Come in." Persona took the liberty in speaking. The knocking stopped and the door cracked open. Mikan looked at her third visitor. _It's Yoichi. _Instead of chubby cheeks and sloppy hands, the nine-year old resembled something like Natsume Hyuuga when he was that age. Mikan would have smiled at him, if not for Persona lingering in the room.

"Nar—Narumi sensei.." gulped Yoichi. He was nervous. And he seemed to be debating whether or not to speak. "..We have some trouble back at the classroom…"

Narumi gave a deep sigh and shifted his gaze at Mikan then at Yoichi, he was far from comfortable at the idea of leaving Mikan alone with Persona. Persona knowing he has the upper hand spoke "Go on. Your class needs you."

Narumi then fixed his gaze at Persona, trying to read what's going inside that thick twisted mind. There's no real trouble happening, only Persona wanting to be alone with Mikan. Narumi scowled but knowing Mikan's abilities Persona would not be able to do anything… At least that's what he's trying to convince himself.

Narumi then shifted his eyes at Mikan, silently saying his apology. He knew he would regret this decision. "I'll.. I'll be going then… " Things would definitely be harder if he didn't leave. And all Narumi could do was follow Yoichi back into their classroom.

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**_…review?_**


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